Suna Ni Ame Rain in the Sand
by Sonata16
Summary: Sunagakure has narrowly escaped the epic tragedy of their history, but the loss of one of their most revered elders still weighs heavy on their hearts. Kazekage, Gaara of the Sand, struggles to contend with his duties, but what will happen when strangers appear in their midst, claiming to come from a world few have dared to imagine?
1. Foreboding

It was nearing midnight, but there was not a single star in the sky to be seen. The dense cover of clouds that had obscured the skies since morning still hung there, ominous and threatening the lands with a tumult of rain, rumbling occasionally with distant thunder, but the land's occupants were by no means convinced that such a tempest would take place. The air was too dry, the weather too bitterly cold. If anything fell from the sky, it was sure to be snow, unless one happened to inhabit Sunagakure no Sato, such as Sabaku no Gaara, who not only resided within the high walls that surrounded Sunagakure, but also happened to be the supreme ruler of said land. Being the Kazekage was no easy job, especially not at the age of seventeen, but it was a job that needed to be done, and Gaara had been the only one in line to assume the mantle of leadership after the passing of his father.

Now standing at the window to his office, gazing up through the thick glass at the threateningly dark skies, he not only anticipated a storm, he welcomed it. Living in the desert had its cons, and a scarcity of water was one of them. Though his people had never gone legitimately thirsty for any length of time, they had always had to take care of the amount they used every day to ensure there was enough to go around to last them until the rainfalls. This storm, though welcomed, was quite unseasonable. In the desert, if it rained at all, it was expected mostly in the springtime and occasionally in the summer and sometimes even into early fall. However, right now it was the dead of winter when most of the surrounding continents were blanketed in thick, white carpets of snow. Suna never expected rainfall in the winter, though their neighbors highly looked forward to the snowfalls, so the prelude to the tempest that was sure to take place was extremely peculiar.

Gaara only remembered rain occurring once in Suna in wintertime when he was a child and that had been but a pittance of rain for the lands. This was sure to be a downpour, and that was exceptionally unusual. It was for this reason he stood at his window, pondering over nature's unusual habits, such as rain falling in the middle of winter in the desert.

He was not entirely sure why, but he somehow sensed that the change in the weather pattern was not the only change about to take place. As he watched lightning veins dance through the pitch black night, briefly illuminating the clouds with an eerie glow, he wondered in the back of his mind if the change he sensed that was to come would be for the better or for the worse. Rain was always a blessing here in the desert, so perhaps whatever was to come would also be a boon of sorts. He would rather not have to deal with any more grief than had previously struck at his village. One of their long lived and respected elders had passed, having offered up her life for his in the time of dire need when he had recently been abducted by the heinous criminal organization the plagued their lands.

Akatsuki was what they called themselves, and they targeted beings like himself. Those beings were those of the ninja world that harbored a powerful and sometimes demonic spirit within their bodies; spirits capable of immense power and destruction. The Akatsuki sought those spirits, desiring to ensnare them and use them for their own gain against the peaceful nations of the world. Gaara had been unfortunate enough to have such a monster trapped within his body, and had been targeted by Akatsuki. They had succeeded in subduing him and taking him to a far off lair he could not recall and sucking the spirit straight from his body, taking his life as well.

Elder Chio had been the one to restore his life to him, but at a terrible price. Her family had long held the secret to a life transfer jutsu, and had kept it under safeguard for the continuation of the line. Chio had been the last of her family who had known the jutsu, and as she had died saving his life she had taken the secret with her to the grave. It was a tragedy that many had mourned for the following weeks, and only now, nearly two months later, had the people of Suna been able to move on from the terror and sorrow of the event. Gaara had spent more time than most of his followers mourning the loss, as it had been for his sake that Chio's life had been forfeit.

He sighed heavily, closing his green eyes against the outside world as he remembered the day they had buried Chio's body just outside the wall of the village. She had been well loved, yet only a very few privileged people had been permitted to attend the burial. Her brother, of course, Gaara and his siblings, and several good friends from Konohagakure no Sato who had come to aid Gaara in his time of need. The sun had set slowly that day, casting crimson shadows across the sand covered landscape. That would be a day Gaara would never forget, so long as he lived.

He sighed again, and lifted a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose to fend off the oncoming migraine he could sense forming in the back of his mind. He needed to stop daydreaming; he still had too much work to do in too little time, and he did not need a headache on top of everything else. Slowly, he lowered his hand and opened his eyes to gaze outside as a light pattering started on the roof overhead. It was beginning to rain, just as he had expected… As he watched, the drops grew evidently in size and number until the light sprinkling that had started was a complete downpour that obscured anything two feet beyond the window into a black and grey blur.

Such a strange occurrence…and he knew there was still more to come. But for better or for worse, he could not be sure; that would soon be revealed to him time.

He turned his back to the window and moved across the room to his desk, seating himself in the high backed chair and drawing a stack of official documents towards him. Change was coming, he knew, but until it came, he still had things to take care of, much as he would like to throw every single paper on his desk into the trash and go to bed. With a heavy inward sigh, he pulled a pen from his chest pocket, and set to work as the rain continued to fall in sheets past the window and beyond, dousing the land in life giving water.

Farther off to the east, nearly four miles away from the stronghold of Gaara's home, there was trouble. Luckily for Gaara, that trouble did not concern him. At least…it did not concern him at the present time.

But as the rain poured down in Suna, it also showered another desolate area of land much less bountiful than that of the Hidden Village. Sungakure's population census was close to thirty thousand people; in this remote area of land, there were only three. Newcomers, bemused, disoriented, and not even a part of the world they now inhabited. These three aliens, all female, were just the beginning of the change that was to come. The change that for now was neither benign nor malignant, but rather a jumble of emotions as the strangers sat in the downpour that had overtaken the beaming sunshine of their previous world, struggling to comprehend just what had happened, and why…


	2. Fateful Encounter

Lightning forked across the sky overhead, and a roar of thunder nearly split Catherine's ears to the point that she screamed and covered her head, almost oblivious to the freezing drops of rain that was driving down on her, giving the impression of a thousand tiny needles stabbing at her exposed arms and legs.

She felt something warm and shivering touch her on her right side, and when she squinted through her closed eyelids to see what it was, she saw the horrified expression of Leahanna as her friend leaned towards her, actually having to shout over the torrential storm to be heard,

"What's going on?"

"I don't know!" Catherine cried back, then cringed as another blast of thunder shook the ground beneath their feet.

Something large bumped Catherine from behind, and when she shrieked and wheeled around it was to see her other friend, Jasmine, cowering beside her, looking around with huge grey eyes full of shock and disbelief.

"Where are we?" Jasmine asked over the whooshing of the rain, flinching as lightning crackled across the sky.

"I don't know," Catherine repeated her first words desperately, looking around, trying to see through the downpour for any landmarks that she might recognize.

This made no sense. What had happened? Just a moment ago she and the others had been standing outside of a bookstore, she and Leahanna had been all but drooling over the newest manga they had laid hands on while Jasmine tried to remain untouched by the subject. It had been sunny and blistering hot; the middle of July. Now, all of a sudden, here they were, sitting on what felt like beach sand, getting soaked through to the bone by freezing cold rain while a tempest raged all around them. She could scarcely see five feet in front of her, and it was for that reason alone that she did not dare rise from her position on the ground and move for fear of losing sight of Jasmine and Leahanna.

"We have to get to shelter!" Jasmine was yelling in her ear then, tugging on her arm as she rose to her feet. Catherine in turn seized Leahanna before the girl could sink into pitch black darkness, and pulled her up with them.

"What shelter?" Catherine demanded of Jasmine as all three of them looked frantically around for any sort of cover. They couldn't see far, but they could at least tell there were no trees near them, and they couldn't make out any buildings, either.

Jasmine, ever the headstrong leader of their group, set her jaw squarely and set her feet in a random direction, beginning to tow the other two girls behind her as she went. If Catherine hadn't been scared out of her mind, and if Leahanna hadn't been disoriented to the point she was almost tripping over her own feet, they might have argued with Jasmine's choice of direction, knowing that their friend had no expertise in navigation—at least on foot; in the car was another matter—but at this point they didn't care where they went so long as it was safe and dry.

They ran as though for their lives, wincing as the lightning flashed and the thunder crashed over their heads, but even after they had sprinted for a clean five minutes, there was no relief from the onslaught of rain. They grew desperate as their journey lengthened with no good results, until Catherine almost wanted to say they should just give up and wait for the storm to pass. For all they knew they could be running the same direction as the storm's chosen path and it was following after them as they went. But just as things seemed more hopeless than ever, out of the gloom rose a blurred black shape, almost square in shape, and with a hoarse cry of triumph and relief Jasmine bolted for it, all but dragging Catherine and Leahanna in the sand behind her.

The structure drew nearer and nearer with every uneven stride that the three of them took, until finally they could make out the distorted shapes of lit windows, and even a darker rectangular shape at about their level that was certain to be a door. They rushed towards the nameless sanctuary, but as they came within nearly three yards of the building Catherine suddenly halted, a shiver running down her spine that had nothing at all to do with the rain washing over her skin. Jasmine kept running, but Leahanna stopped when she realized her friend was no longer with them. Turning back, she saw Catherine standing motionless, staring at the building in uncertainty.

"Cat, come on!" Leahanna cried, waving desperately.

Catherine seemed to hesitate, take a step forward, then stopped and stepped back, shaking her head.

"Something's wrong!" she called back to her friend, now looking more scared than uncertain. "We can't go in there!"

"Cat, what else are we going to do?" demanded Leahanna, storming over to her friend and grabbing her by the hand. "We're all but drowning out here! Don't worry about it! It's just your imagination."

But Catherine was very certain it was _not _just her imagination. Something was honestly wrong, and she did not want to go any nearer to the building. Unfortunately, Jasmine was already at the door, hammering with her fist and yelling for the occupants to answer, and as her hesitation caused her a lapse in concentration, Leahanna succeeded in pulling her forwards towards the shadowy edifice.

"Is anyone home?" Jasmine was yelling as her friends came up behind her, shivering and glancing around uneasily as lightning continued to flash and the thunder continued to roll ominously overhead. "Hey! We need to get in! It's pouring out here!"

"Because I'm sure that's going to endear them to the invasion of strangers," Leahanna muttered under her breath.

Jasmine wasn't known for her chivalrous approach, and now more than ever Leahanna wasn't appreciating that lack of etiquette. On the other hand, if they weren't loud enough, they might never be heard over the tumult of the storm. For that reason alone, Leahanna forced herself to suffer Jasmine's unorthodox approach to getting sympathy from the owners of the building. On her other side and slightly behind her, Catherine was shaking from more than just cold.

She felt like she was being watched, and not in a good way. It was the kind of feeling one had preceding an assault of some sort, the uneasy sense that you were about to encounter an unfriendly entity very intent on causing harm to you or anyone around you. She didn't like having that feeling, and would have given anything to get away. She was all but praying that the people inside wouldn't answer the door, and that they would have to move on. But at the same time she wondered if their only chance for sanctuary from whatever danger lurked unseen nearby rested with the colossal structure before them. One way or the other, she just wanted to get out of the rain, and she wanted to get as far from the uneasy feeling forming in the pit of her stomach as possible.

"Hey!" Jasmine was using both fists to hammer on the door with all her might. "Is anyone there?"

"I'm going to say no one is, considering you've been yelling at the top of your lungs for almost five minutes," Leahanna said, her teeth chattering from the cold.

Jasmine swore eloquently under her breath and gave the door a good hard kick. As was the usual result, nothing happened, and that left Jasmine to turn to the other two girls, blinking the rain out of her eyes, and face the reality that they were not going to get inside.

"What now?" Leahanna stammered, rubbing her arms in a feeble attempt to keep warm.

"I don't know," groaned Jasmine, pulling her arms into her t-shirt as though that might somehow increase her body's temperature. "This looks like the only building around and no one's letting us in. Jackasses…"

Catherine was slowly scanning the surrounding area, though her eyes couldn't see far enough to be beneficial to her cause, and then just as slowly she turned to look up at the building towering over them. What was worse, she wondered? Staying out here, victims to unknown danger, or entering the house and facing the anger of whatever residents occupied it?

As she felt the rain's power grow and the downpour increased to the point that her five foot radius of sight was reduced to a mere three feet in front of her, the storm made up her mind for her. Shivering with cold and fear, she approached the door, lifted her small, trembling fist, and knocked three times on the wooden slab in front of her. Jasmine and Leahanna stared at her for a moment, as though in doing what she had she had somehow demonstrated insanity.

"They're not going to let us in, Cat," Jasmine said bitterly, glaring rather resentfully at the door. "It doesn't matter what we—"

But her words were suddenly cut off by the quiet turning of the knob, and the creak of the door was it was pulled open from the inside. A streak of light cut the darkness, blinding Leahanna momentarily so she covered her eyes with a quietly muttered oath. A face appeared in the small crack between the door and the wall, looking down at the three of them, and Catherine felt an unpleasant squirming in her stomach as she looked up into a young man's pale face. He was thin in appearance, or so it seemed; she couldn't see the rest of his body for the large cloak he wore. His hair was black in color, long and tied back into a loose ponytail at the back of his neck, and his eyes were vibrant; gleaming unnaturally red as he examined the three shivering girls before him.


	3. Strangers

Catherine couldn't stop shaking from the rain, and now more so as the vermillion eyed stranger gazed down at them with that cold stare of his, assessing them…_judging them_. The thought came unbidden into her mind, but she banished it quickly as the man settled his strange eyes directly upon her.

"Can I help you?" he asked, his voice soft, but Catherine sensed an underlying tone of menace.

"I'm sorry to bother you," she stammered, trying not to let her teeth chatter even as the ice cold rain penetrated completely through her already sodden shirt to her skin, raising goose bumps all along her arms and legs and the back of her neck. "We're lost and this is the only building we've seen. Would it be possible for us to stay here until the storm passes?"

Behind her, Jasmine was staring in total disbelief at the man in the doorway. She knew for a fact that if he'd heard Catherine's pitiful excuse for a knock, he had most definitely heard her furious banging. If he had been ignoring her, she thought furiously, he was in for a piece of her mind.

Leahanna, on the other hand, was exceptionally relieved, and even a tad proud of Catherine. She knew as well as Jasmine that this man had to have heard their first attempts to gain access to enter the building, and had no doubt been ignoring them, but Catherine's humble approach to the situation had definitely borne more fruit than Jasmine's bold one, metaphorically speaking.

The man in the doorway was now taking in every single one of them with careful analysis. His gaze lingered on Catherine a little longer than Leahanna, and barely even glanced towards Jasmine.

"Of course," he said, and stepped back, pulling the door wide open for them. "Please, come in."

"Thank you very much," Catherine thanked him earnestly, and would have allowed the other girls to pass her to enter, but Leahanna gave her a slight push from behind so she was the first to scurry across the doorstep.

The minute she entered the front hall of the building, she was enveloped in instant warmth and light, and breathed a sigh of relief when the man with the red eyes closed the door behind them, noticeably lessening the din of the monstrous storm. Leahanna huddled close to her, as did Jasmine, but the latter of the girls was set on glaring at the man who had allowed them entrance, apparently not appeased by his graciousness in place of his impudence when she had first attempted to get them inside.

"Not to be rude," she said, though everything in her voice was saturated with indignance and rudeness, "But why didn't you hear us the first time?"

The man faced her, his face an implacable mask that anyone but Jasmine would have cringed away from, and said in a chilling voice, "I heard you, but I don't really have much patience for impatient people, regardless of their situation. I could tell from the minute you started banging on our door you were a person accustomed to getting their way with as little effort as possible, and very likely impatient when it doesn't happen that way. If it weren't for your friend here, you would have been left out in the rain."

Jasmine's jaw went slack with disbelief as the man turned on his heel and walked down the hallway, only turning once to say,

"Wait here, I will fetch some towels for you and check to see if we have any available rooms for the night."

When he had disappeared around a far corner, Jasmine wheeled around to face the rather smug looking Leahanna and the shivering Catherine, who was looking down at her toes to avoid meeting the girl's eyes.

"What the hell?" Jasmine exclaimed furiously, her grey eyes blazing with furious fire beneath her fiery red hair, which was plastered to her forehead from the rain. "How rude can you get?"

"I don't know if that was rude so much as he was being honest," Leahanna told her friend with a lazy shrug, her blue eyes glinting with barely concealed amusement. At least she'd found out she wasn't the only person who couldn't stand Jasmine's bossy behavior. Never mind that their unusual host sort of scared the hell out of her, she had an ally.

"Well, at least Cat got us in," grumbled Jasmine, realizing she wasn't going to win the argument. "I just hope they've got space for us."

"I'd be happy to sleep on the floor if they don't, so long as I don't have to go back outside in that storm again," said Leahanna with a convulsive shudder at the very thought of having to endure the pounding rain.

"That won't be necessary," said the man's voice, and when they looked around he was back carrying a stack of three plush towels. "We have available rooms."

"Thank God," whispered Jasmine, and eagerly took the towel he handed her.

"There are two open rooms," the man informed them as they wrapped themselves in their towels, still shivering with cold. "One has two beds open, and the other has one bed. However, whoever chooses to take the single bed will be sharing the room with myself."

Jasmine had to try very hard not to make a face at the thought of sharing a room with Creeper Man, and instantly volunteered herself for the two bed bedroom. Leahanna looked uncertainly at Catherine for her opinion. When Catherine caught her eye, she shrugged her slender shoulders.

"I don't care," she said in answer to Leahanna's unspoken question, lifting a shaking hand to push at the silky fall of her long, auburn hair, which was steadily dripping rainwater onto the tile floor at their feet.

"I'll sleep in the room with Jasmine," Leahanna decided. She didn't know why, other than the possible fact that the guy scared her, but she really wasn't enticed by the thought of being in the same room with him. Catherine wasn't the most assertive of their group, either, she thought, chewing nervously on her lower lip, suddenly caught between her choices. If the guy decided to do something to her… "Um, actually—"

But she was cut across as a door banged open somewhere in the vicinity, causing them all to jump in alarm, save the red eyed man, who simply glanced behind him with a quiet sigh.

"What is it, Hidan?" he called as they heralded the approach of rapid, angry sounding footsteps.

"I smell women!" snapped a cold, impatient voice. "More women than usual!"

"Stragglers," the man in front of them explained as another male rounded the corner. Unlike his comrade this new arrival had snowy white hair that was cropped short and sleeked back on the top of his head. His eyes were an unusual shade of violet, and cut at the three girls as he spared them one, disdainful glance.

"What? We're a homeless shelter now?" griped Hidan, storming forward and standing over his friend, who was nearly a head shorter.

"If you have such an objection, why don't you take it up with Leader?" prompted the dark haired man calmly, unwavering even under the unkind stare of the taller, visibly more aggressive male.

"You can bet your dick I will," sneered Hidan, turning on his heel and beginning to stalk off down a separate hall adjacent to the one he had appeared from. "And we'll see how he feels about you taking in homeless little bitches!"

Jasmine was aghast as she watched Hidan vanish from their sight, listening to his footsteps becoming quieter as he moved farther from their small group. Leahanna's eyes were rather large with disbelief, and Catherine looked frightened.

"Never mind Hidan," the man in front of them said with a resigned sigh. "He is always acting like that, regardless of who he is speaking to. He believes himself to be the lord of the manor."

_Some manor, _thought Jasmine with a quiet snort. The place was a dump. She hadn't had much chance to look around at first, but during the time she'd been standing there she had finally taken in a closer inspection of her surroundings and was rather disgusted to see the paint on the walls was peeling, looking a lot like blue dandruff as it scattered on the tiled floor, which was cracked with small weeds springing up in some places. Down the hall was no better, and she suspected the rest of the threshold was just as bad.

"Who is Leader?" asked Leahanna then, curious.

"Just as it sounds, he is our leader," the man explained simply. "No one knows his name, and he mostly keeps to himself. His second-in-command, Konan, normally takes care of things for him. I doubt very much that Hidan will actually be able to have a direct audience with Leader. Konan only allows those who are higher privileged inside with Leader's consent."

"And who are those higher privileged people?" asked Leahanna, overcoming her fear of all the strange occurrences as her natural chattiness overtook her.

"Myself for one," admitted the man, and waved his hand at them before beginning to lead the way down the hallway he had taken earlier to retrieve towels, "And one of our former members."

"Former?" repeated Catherine uncertainly.

"It is not important," said the man dismissively. "He was not who he appeared to be. He was sent away to do with his life what he willed."

"Oh…" Catherine fell quiet.

They walked in silence for a little while, Leahanna not having enough wits about her yet to be able to form her own questions without some sort of subject to prompt her. Jasmine was determinedly ignoring the rest of them, looking around with her nose wrinkled up at the decrepit state of the building's interior. Catherine remained quiet, though that was not unexpected; she had always been the reclusive one of their trio. And the man leading them continued on without concern for the abrupt silence, until at one point he glanced back over his shoulder at them and asked with genuine curiosity,

"What village are you from? It has only just occurred to me that you are not wearing any of the attire I am used to seeing."

The girls exchanged uncertain looks, and Leahanna even looked down at her jeans and t-shirt.

_Okay, _she thought, _We are definitely not in Kansas anymore, Toto. _

How could anyone say that jeans and a t-shirt were not usual attire? If it wasn't normal here, what _was_?

"We're not from a village," said Jasmine, sounding caught between defiance and confusion.

"Are you rogues, then?" the man asked, looking the slightest bit surprised as he turned a little more fully to face them, pausing just outside an open door, which faced across the hall from another open and apparently vacant room.

"No," snapped Jasmine. "What are you even talking about? We're from North Carolina!"

The man narrowed his eyes at them, looking bemused. "I have never heard of such a place," he informed them slowly, and his tone seemed to question Jasmine's sanity.

Jasmine's mouth fell open, her eyes wide in shock. Leahanna stared, and Catherine's eyes glittered with alarm.

"You're kidding me, right?" said Leahanna weakly, feeling suddenly nauseous.

"I don't kid," said the man blankly.

"Not good," whispered Leahanna, putting a hand to her forehead and struggling not to faint. Oh, yeah, they were definitely not in "Kansas" anymore. Anyone in any part of the world would have known what North Carolina was, at least vaguely, if not directly. Europeans would know, Asians would know. Even Africans might know. So if this man was telling them he had no idea what North Carolina was and that he was in no way joking with them, then they were in serious shit.


	4. Sheltered

"You should rest," the man said, abruptly returning to his aloof and calm manner. "Perhaps you will be more prepared to find your way home after some sleep."

"Yeah," said Leahanna, massaging her temples slowly while Jasmine stood erect beside her, her face white but emotionless. "Yeah, sounds good…"

"That is your room," the man told them, pointing across the hall to the vacant room in front of them. "This is where I shall be." He gestured behind him to the open doorway.

Leahanna, still absorbing the shock of the moment, moved numbly across the hall to her directed room, unaware that mere minutes before she had been planning on trading with Catherine, who now felt a little queasy as the dark haired man faced her.

"I am sorry," he apologized suddenly, still remote. "I never asked your name, or your friends' names."

She hesitated, then swallowed her fears and forced herself to meet his unusual, eerie red gaze.

"I am Catherine," she said. "The red head is my friend Jasmine, and the blonde was Leahanna."

The man nodded slowly, mouthing quietly to himself, seemingly trying to memorize the names. His brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed then.

"Is something wrong?" she asked uncertainly, feeling suddenly cold despite the warmth saturating her pores from the surrounding air.

"Your names are unusual," he told her.

"Oh." She looked down, embarrassed. She supposed that was to become common while they were here. Everything about them appeared to be strange to these people.

"Well, you should get some rest as well," he told her, ushering her into the room. "It is very late and I am sure you and your friends would prefer to leave as soon as possible if you are hoping to reach your homeland."

"Yes, thank you very much," she thanked him, then paused uncertainly as faced the two beds. There was no sign of anyone residing in the room, despite the fact he said he had been inhabiting the area, so she couldn't be sure what bed to occupy.

"The one to the right is mine," he said, sensing her dilemma.

She moved to the one on the left, and had just slipped the damp towel from around her shoulders and was wondering how she was going to sleep in her soaked clothes when the door to Jasmine's and Leahanna's room opened and Jasmine stuck her head out, looking irritable.

"Hey," she snapped at their host. "Our clothes are soaking wet. Do you have a dryer?"

He blinked at her, his expression skeptical. "You have the oddest way of speaking," he informed her. "What is a dryer?"

"Are you fucking joking?" Jasmine muttered under her breath, looking absolutely livid.

"If you would like a change of clothes, I am sure I can find something suitable for the three of you," the man said, and glanced at Catherine as though for approval.

"That would be greatly appreciated," she said. The man nodded and left, moving down the hallway to a farther off door. He knocked once and when a voice responded he entered.

"These people," grumbled Jasmine. "I swear, we must have gotten blown back to the Stone Age!"

"They're living in a modern age building," pointed out Leahanna, sounding tired but defensive as she appeared beside Jasmine.

Jasmine thought that over for a moment, then shrugged, not satisfied.

"They don't know what North Carolina is, and they don't have driers," she said tartly. "They're retarded."

"They let us stay here," murmured Catherine softly.

"HE let us stay here," corrected Jasmine, jerking a thumb in the direction that the dark haired man had gone. "His friend didn't seem so happy to have us here."

"I doubt that guy was his friend, Jas," said Leahanna dully. "More like housemates that would rather the other one kicked the can."

Jasmine might have responded, but the man reappeared, carrying a bundle of black cloth. He paused in an attempt to close the door, but a hand blocked its progress, and a body soon followed as another man emerged, visibly shorter and definitely blonder than the first, with hair so long that for a brief instant Leahanna assumed that it was a girl she was seeing.

"So what was Hidan raising such hell about earlier, mm?" the blond asked, and the dark haired man glanced down the hallway towards Catherine and the others. The blond looked around with an expression close to boredom on his face. His eyes immediately had Leahanna entranced. They were vivid blue, almost to the point of being ridiculously so, with dark lashes that made them pop. Those eyes found her, widened, then narrowed to slits. "You have _got _to be joking, mm!"

"They were out in the rain, Deidara," sighed the dark haired man, sounding weary.

"I wasn't complaining," snapped Deidara. "I'm pissed because you didn't tell anyone else, you selfish bastard, mm!"

The dark haired man suddenly had Deidara pinned against the wall, and the resounding bang of body hitting wall was startling enough to make Catherine jump and wince.

"Don't," the man murmured dangerously to Deidara, "Even consider it, or I can guarantee you your night will not be a pleasant one, Iwa no Deidara. Is that understood?"

"Alright!" grunted Deidara, and shoved the man off of him. "Jeez…cocky bastard…"

"Just remember that the next time you consider opening your mouth," the dark haired male told him darkly, moving back towards Catherine and the others.

As he neared her, Catherine took an automatic step back. His demeanor was by no means comforting at the moment, and she'd rather not be too close if he happened to blow a gasket. It was quite evident that this man and his blond companion did not have a very close-knit relationship between them; if anything, it seemed more like a double-sided hate relationship. Those could be bitter and dangerous. Catherine had seen it first hand, as she had been on the giving end of one of those relationships before…

"Here." Her dark haired host unexpectedly tossed a stack of clothes at her, which she only barely managed to catch before they dropped to the floor in a heap. "They will probably be a bit larger than is comfortable, but at least they're dry."

"Thank you," she murmured softly, not meeting his gaze.

Leahanna took the exchange of dry clothes gratefully, and Jasmine accepted her bundle, though not without commentary.

"So, while you're still around," she said rather snobbishly, "What's your name? We've met your, uh…friends, but we still have yet to learn your title."

He glanced at her, then away without speaking.

Leahanna heaved an inward sigh and resisted the urge to glare at Jasmine. The girl was seriously not getting the point… Thankfully, Catherine was a bit quicker on the uptake, and not quite so exhausted as Leahanna by that point. So she was capable of issuing a more gentile approach to the situation.

"I'm sorry, but we never got your name," she said softly to the man, as though Jasmine had not even spoken before her.

The man paused and looked sideways at her, his gleaming red eyes analyzing her for the briefest of moments before he turned away.

"Itachi," he murmured softly in response, and continued on his way down the hall. "Get some sleep," he ordered over his shoulder. "I will wake you in the morning when the storm passes. In the meantime, I will be discussing with Leader the conditions of your temporary residence. I am sure he may wish to interview you all."

"What for?" asked Catherine, surprised and a little alarmed at the same time.

"Leader is a suspicious man," Itachi said, pausing to look back at them. "He has many enemies in these lands. All of whom would wish to do him harm by any means necessary. If he is to survive and protect what is dear to him, as well as the rest of us, he has to know who is a true friend, and who is a foe. It is not that we bear any ill will towards you, but no one can be too careful in this time and age."

"Oh…" Catherine gazed at Itachi, slowly comprehending. "I see… Then, if would like to speak with us, we would be happy to comply and answer any questions he might have. We did not come here to harm anyone."

Itachi looked at her steadily, his eyes speculative as he took her in as though he were seeing her clearly for the first time. Then, slowly he nodded his head, turned away, and vanished around the corner and out of sight. Catherine watched the spot where he had disappeared for a long moment, contemplating his words to her and the others. So, this place was dangerous. Much more dangerous it seemed than their home. If they wanted to survive here, it was in their best interests to listen to Itachi, and to his leader, whoever the man was. Otherwise, they were very likely to end up in a dire situation.

"Well," Jasmine yawned, stretching immensely; pulling Catherine abruptly from her reverie, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting changed and going to bed. I'm beat, and if he's getting us up when the rain stops we might want to have gotten at least a couple of hours of shut-eye."

Leahanna murmured a quiet assent, then looked at Catherine with a surprisingly uncertain gaze.

"Will you be okay with that guy?" the blond girl asked seriously. Catherine blinked at her, momentarily thrown by the severity of the question, and the implications behind it.

"Yes, of course," she reassured Leahanna with a soft smile. "Don't worry about it, Leah. He's not a bad person. I don't see him stooping to something like that. He's just trying to help us out."

She thought she heard a derisive snort from the direction of Deidara's room, but when she turned her head to look the door was firmly shut with no evidence that anyone had been present to eavesdrop on their conversation. Perhaps she had imagined it, she thought without much conviction. To be honest, Itachi as well as his other comrades gave her an uneasy feeling, but she wasn't about to let that ruin their stay here, especially since Itachi had gone to the trouble of ensuring they had shelter and dry clothes after having been stuck out in the downpour that was still very much on the go from the sounds of the pounding on the roof.

"Alright," sighed Leahanna, and walked across the short distance between her and Catherine to give the girl an awkward one armed hug. "Just yell if you need us."

"Will do." Catherine smiled, and returned the hug before slipping away from Leahanna to take refuge in the provided room. She closed the door behind her, turned away, then paused, thinking, before turning back around to set the lock. She was trying not to be judgmental, but she really didn't want to run the risk of Itachi returning the moment she was changing in his room.

She undressed quickly to lessen the chances of such an event occurring. Peeling off her sodden shirt and jeans and draping them over the footboard of her bed before hastily pulling on the silk robe and slacks that Itachi had managed to provide. They were large, as he had warned they might be, and she had to roll the hem of the pants a couple of times to enable her feet to touch the floor so she would not trip over the overly long hems. She noticed as she tied the robe closed around herself with the silk tie attached to it that the clothes had a distinctly masculine scent, and she couldn't help but stop and lift the sleeve to her nose, inhaling deeply. She closed her eyes, sighing contentedly. The smell was unusually comforting, and she couldn't help but wonder if the smell was the result of Itachi or possibly the man named Deidara, whose room had been the storage area of the garments.

After remembering to unlock the door, as she carefully pulled back the heavy comforter atop the bed and climbed up onto the soft mattress, she could already feel the weight of sleep beginning to drag her down before her head even hit the pillow. Everything was upside down and inside out as of now… She didn't even know where she was anymore, and the people that she and Jasmine and Leahanna had first encountered in this strange dimension were even less clued in than themselves as to the location of their home. That was frightening in of itself, but now learning that this new world was not simply a remake of their own, and possibly ten times more threatening, was an added fear that she would have to face when the morning came. At least they were safe, and dry, and Itachi was going to speak with his leader about them. It was a relief, even if only a small one, she thought as she sank slowly into slumber, to know that there were people in this world who cared about strangers such as themselves…


	5. Contemplation

In the dark of the night, just below the floor of the room where Catherine slept soundly, dreaming peacefully as the tempest raged on outside, on and on into the night, a shadow moved with terrifying silence through the bowels of the household, red eyes glittering like two flames of hellfire as they pierced through the blackest patches of darkness. The shadow moved down a hallway, then turned to stride down yet another, its eyes fixed upon the farthest door, anticipation building as it neared that single, darkened doorway. No light emitted from under the crack, no sound gave hint to the existence of life beyond the barricade of wood, but the shadow knew better than to be deceived.

As it came to a halt outside the door, awaiting the moment when its master would acknowledge its presence, it glanced slowly around, searching for any indications that it had been tailed to its discreet location.

The door creaked, and the shadow returned its demonic eyes to the door, satisfied with its brief inspection to be comfortable facing the woman facing it in the doorway.

"Itachi," the woman murmured softly, her amber eyes gleaming as brightly as the shadow's. "He has been waiting for you."

"I would have expected as much," Itachi replied softly, and when the woman stepped to the side to allow him entry, he stepped fluidly across the threshold, not so much as flinching as the door slammed shut behind him, plunging him into absolute darkness that even his all-seeing eyes could not penetrate. Even without his sight, he could sense the presence of power stirring in the depth of the room, coming to life to face him. Two eyes opened slowly, shining like ice cold stars through the darkness to meet Itachi's red gaze.

"Itachi…I hope you have a good excuse for welcoming possible enemies into our stronghold," a soft, rasping voice murmured softly, coming seemingly from the darkness itself.

"Ignorant children, Leader," Itachi assured his master softly. "They know nothing of us."

"How can you be sure?" Leader prompted him quietly. "They could be lying."

"They are not from this world," Itachi said with total conviction in his voice. "Their names, their appearance, the way they dress and speak are all alien to me. Their homeland is not heard of in our countries. They are outsiders. Completely naïve to our ways and our identities."

Leader was quiet for a long while, his eyes narrowed through the shadows as he considered was his subordinate was telling him. Finally, he closed his eyes, and his deep sigh was heard.

"There is no threat?" he murmured to Itachi.

"None," Itachi replied, thoroughly assured of his knowledge. Leader fell silent once more, but this quiet lasted too long for Itachi's comfort, and Itachi was well known for his patience; he was not one to lose his temper prematurely. "What would you have me do, Leader?"

"Gain their trust," Leader told him immediately, as though he had been waiting for Itachi's question. "Start with the one who will win the others over more quickly. Delude them. Convince them that there is no safe haven outside of these walls for them. We must not allow them to escape us now that they have discovered us."

"Will we train them?" Itachi asked.

"No," said Leader, his denial vehement. "They must not learn to fight, or they may gain the arrogance to presume they can defeat us. They might be put to good use in the near future, but we cannot allow them to gain power that might be used against us."

"I understand, Leader." Itachi bowed his head submissively, accepting his Leader's will as his law.

"The girl who resides in your quarters," Leader murmured, "What is your assumption of her? And the others as well? Hidan came earlier on to inform me of his presumptions, but I would rather witness it from a more trusted source."

"The girl is withdrawn," Itachi said quietly. "Though somehow I sense she is not all she appears to be. There is more to her. The others are more outspoken. Particularly the red headed woman named Jasmine. She will be difficult to sway to our devices. The blonde woman, Leahanna, seems to follow more with Catherine, and also seems to have supreme control over the group. She is the median between the two extremes of the others."

"I see," murmured Leader, his tone musing. "You must begin with Leahanna, then. If she is the key to the others, she is the most crucial to our influence. After her, you must persuade Catherine. If you can convince the two of them, the remaining female is sure to follow. Women are predictable in this way. When the majority moves in a certain direction, the minority will undoubtedly come behind them."

"Yes, Leader." Again, Itachi inclined his head.

"That is all, Itachi," Leader dismissed him. "In the morning, you will bring Leahanna here to me, and we will speak to her of her and her friend's futures here with us of the Akatsuki."

Itachi's eyes flashed in the darkness as he lifted his head slowly to meet his master's piercing gaze.

"Yes, Leader-sama."


End file.
